Engine.



PATENTED JUNE 7, 1904.

J. A. NORTON.

' ENGINE.

OATION r J Minn! wm w w WITNESSES:

PATENTED JUNE 7, 1904.

J. A.V NORTON.

ENGINE.

APPLIoATIoN FILED JUNE 22,1903.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 3.

N0 MODEL.

| EN R.'

UNITED STATES Patented June 7, 1904.

PATENT OEEICE.

ENGINE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 762,189, dated June f7, 1904.

Application filed June 22, 1903.

To all whom t muy concern.'

Be it .known that I,- JAMEs A. NORTON, a

vcitizenof the United States, residing at Odepansive fluid, whether steam, hot air, or gas,

which shall be especially advantageous in respect to compactness and symmetry relatively to the power developed and specifically which lshall be approximately balanced as to distri- -bution of its weight on opposite sides of the Vmain shaft to adapt it to use as a motive power in boats and launches, in which a plurality of .such engines may be assembled side by side,

operating on a common fore-and-aft main shaft, or 1n other situations in which a plurality of motors may be desired for operationv on a common shaft with the facilityfor using one 'or any greater number of them, as the work may require. I

It consists in the features of construction which are set out in the claims.

- In the drawings, Figure 1 is a side elevation of my improved engine. Fig. 2 is an elevation of the opposite side, certain parts being partly broken away to disclose the interior features. Fig. 3 is an end elevation of the same. Fig. 4 is a section at the line 4 4 on Fig. 1.

Rigid with a base or standard 1 I formtwo cylinders 2 and 3, one above the other, having their chambers separated by a sufficient distance to permit the main shaft 4 to obtain .means of clutches on said shaft at opposite ends of the bearing 5. These clutches each comprise an interior element 9, rigid with the shaft, and an exterior element or .drum 10,.

Serial No. 162,511. (No model.)

loose on the shaft, which is connected with the pistons for actuation. The upper piston has for that purpose rigid with it the bar 11, parallel with the piston-rod and carried rigidly therewith by means of the arms 12 12, jutting off from the upper end of the crossheads 8 8, respectively. Similarly the lower Vpiston carries rigidly a parallel rod 13, secured .by means of the arms 14 14, jutting off from the cross-heads at their lower end. The bar 11 is connected with the exterior element 10 of the cl-utch at one end of the bearing5 by means of flexible cables or chains 15 15, which are attached, each at one end, to the rod and wrapped in' opposite directions on the drum 10 -over the upper side thereof, and in like man- 10, the clutch-balls 16, lodged in the pockets formed in the periphery of the element 9 and adapted to clamp the two elements 9 and 10 together when the outer element is revolved in direction to pinch the balls in the pockets and to permit free rotation of the outer element in the opposite direction by releasing the balls, all in a manner well understood. The two clutches have their pockets constructed and balls arranged so as to communicate rotary motion to the shaft both in the same direction; but one being actuated at the lower side and the other atthe upper side it will be seen that the stroke of the pistons in one direction causes one clutch to drive the shaft, while the other rotates idly about it, and the stroke ofthe .pistons in the opposite direction causes the clutch which idled in the first stroke to continue the rotation of the shaft while the rst clutch rotates idly. Thus the rotation of the shaft continuously in the same direction results from the reciprocation of the two pistons together. AIt will be noticed that the structure is symmetrical about the vertical axial plane of the shaft 4 and that the entire length of the structure over all parts is substantially only double the length of the cylinder, and the total space required for the ac- IOO tion, including the stroke of the pistons, from the extreme position in one direction to the extreme position in the opposite direction is about three times the length of the stroke only, and this compactness is due to the construction by which the main shaft is journaled transversely between the two cylinders.

In respect to the valve action of this engine it is identical with my application, Serial No. 147,392, filed March 12, 1903, and this action need therefore be described only briefly. rlhe motive fluid is controlled in its admission to and discharge from the cylinders by pistonvalves 27 27, which operate in chambers 17 17, parallel with the cylinders, respectively, both at the same side, said valve-chambers being sufiiciently separated vertically to leave room for one of the clutches between them, as seen in Figs. 3 and 4. The two valve-stems are connected at their opposite ends by crossheads 18 18, and these cross-heads are in turn connected by the bars 19 19, between which the main shaft 4 extends and which carry on the short cross-necks 2O 20 the abutments 21 21, upon which the valve-operating cam 22 acts as the shaft revolves, said cam being' carried rigidly by the shaft 4 and having the element 23 adjustable with respect to the main portion to vary the angular distance between the slopes which operate to shift the valves for admission and cut-off of the steam, and thereby to vary the point of cut-off in the stroke, as fully explained in my said pending application. The live steam may be admitted to the valve-chambers and the exhaust-steam discharged therefrom through passages formed in any convenient relation to these valve-chambers, as illustrated, the live steam which is admitted at the connection 24 at one end and finds its way by passages 25 25, leading round the bearing 5 to the upper and lower pistonchambers, respectively, and the exhaust-steam is discharged from said chambers at both ends through ports 26, which may for convenience be connected by exterior pipes (not shown) for conducting the exhaust to a convenient point for its discharge into the atmosphere.

l. An engine comprising two cylinders rigid and parallel with each other; pistons operating synchronously in said cylinders, and for such operation rigidly connected outside the cylinders; a main shaft extending between the cylinders transversely thereto; two clutches on said shaft comprising each a fast and a loose element, both clutches being adapted to rotate the shaft in the same direction and to have the loose element idle thereabout in the opposite direction, the loose elements of said clutches being connected for oscillation respectively at opposite sides of the axis of the shaft.

2. An engine comprising two cylinders rigid and parallel with each other; pistons operating synchronously in said cylinders, and for such operation rigidly connected outside the cylinders; a main shaft extending between the cylinders transversely thereto; two clutches on said shaft, both adapted to rotate the shaft in the same direction and to idle thereabout in the opposite direction, the outer elements of said clutches being connected for oscillation with the pistons at opposite sides of the axis of said outer elements respectively.

3. An engine comprising two parallel cylinders mounted rigidly with each other; a main shaft extending' transversely within them; pistons in said cylinders having their respective rods rigidly connected outside the cylinders for synchronous action; two clutches on the shaft, both adapted to rotate the shaft in the same direction and idle thereabout in the opposite direction; rods parallel with the pistons extending on opposite sides of the shaftaxis and rigidly connected with the pistons outside the cylinders, the outer elements of said clutches being in the form of cylindrical drums, one of said rods being connected with one of said drums at one side of the axis, and the other being connected with the other drum at the other side of the axis for oscillation of said drums as the pistons reciprocate.

4. An engine comprising two parallel cylinders mounted rigid with each other; a main shaft extending transversely between them; pistons in the cylinders respectively, having their rods rigidly connected outside the cylinders for synchronous action; two clutches on the shaft, both adapted to rotate it in the same direction and to idle about it in the opposite direction; two supplemental rods rigid with the piston-rods extending outside the cylinders at opposite sides of the shaft, the exterior elements of said clutches consisting of cylindrical drums, each of said supplemental rods being connected to one of the drums for oscillation as the rod reciprocates; flexible chains or cables which make such connection attached respectively to the rod at points remote from each other and lapped about the drums in opposite directions. p

5. An engine comprising two parallel cylinders mounted rigid with each other; a main shaft extending and having its bearing transverse] y between them; pistons in said cylinders respectively having their rods rigidly connected outside the cylinders for synchronous action; clutches on the shaft at the opposite ends of said bearing and opposite sides of the cylinders, both adapted to rotate the shaft in the same direction and to idle thereabout in the opposite direction; rods parallel with the piston-rods at opposite sides of the cylinders extending past the peripheries of said clutches at opposite sides of the shaft, and means connecting said rods with the exterior elements of said clutches respectively for oscillation of the latter as the pistons and rods reciprocate.

6. An engine comprising two cylinders rigid and parallel with each other; pistons operat- IIO ing synchronously in said cylinders, and for such operation rigidly connected outside the cylinders; a main shaft extending between the cylinders transversely thereto, and two clutches on said shaft comprising each a fast and loose element.

7. An engine comprising two cylinders rigid and 'parallel with each other; pistons operating synchronously in said cylinders, and for such'operation rigidly connected outside the cylinders; a main shaft extending between the cylinders transversely thereto, and two clutches on said shaft comprising each a fast and loose element, and connections from the pistons to the loose elements of said clutches respectively at opposite sides of the shaft.

8. An engine comprising two cylinders rigid andparallel with each other; pistons operating synchronously in said cylinders, and for such operation rigidly connected outside the cylinders; a main shaft extending between the cylinders transversely thereto, and two clutches on said shaft.

9. An engine comprising two cylinders rigid and parallel with each other; pistons operating synchronously in said cylinders, and for such operation rigidly connected outside the cylinders; a main shaft extending between the cylinderstransversely thereto; two clutches on said shaft, each comprising an interior element fast on the shaft, and an exterior element, and connections from the pistons to said exterior elements respectively at opposite sides of the shaft.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand, in the presence of two witnesses, at Odebolt, Iowa, this 18th day of June, 1903.

JAMES A. NORTON.

In presence of- FREDK. G. FISCHER, J. S. ABBOTT. 

